WASHINGTON (AP) Congress has passed legislation to ease restrictions on federal funding of embryonic stem cell research.And the President should veto it...again.
Interesting how the "federal funding" phrasing has managed to find its way in to this debate... Proponents have been calling the current policy a "stem cell reseach ban" but really it is nothing more than making it illegal for the federal government to fund the research. The research itself has never been made illegal, but you wouldn't know that by the way the media reported the issue.
UPDATE: Boehner Statement Opposing Legislation Forcing Taxpayers to Foot the Bill for Destruction of Human Embryos:
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman John Boehner (R-West Chester) today released the following statement upon House passage of legislation (S.5) that would force taxpayers to foot the bill for the killing of human embryos:“It is outrageous and unnecessary to force taxpayers to foot the bill for the exploitation and destruction of human embryos. It’s ironic that the majority pushed this bill on the day after researchers announced a breakthrough in stem cell research that shows progress can be made without destroying human life. The question is not whether you support stem cell research – it is whether we should be focusing time and taxpayer dollars on destroying human embryos or on research that has the greatest potential for near-term clinical benefit, like adult stem cell research.
“The federal government should be in the business of protecting – not killing – human life.”